The United States Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross, has announced that the Department of Commerce, on behalf of the President of the US, has reappointed Takreem El Tohamy, IBM’s general manager for the Middle East and Africa, to the US President’s Advisory Council On Doing Business in Africa (PAC-DBIA).

The PAC-DBIA was established in 2014 to provide analysis and recommendations to the US President, through the secretary of commerce, on strengthening commercial engagement between the US and Africa.

In its third term, 2019-2021, the PAC-DBIA will continue to play a critical role informing US government policies and activities across the continent, particularly in advancing the economic pillar of the Trump administration’s Africa strategy through ‘Prosper Africa.’

This is a whole-of-government, economic initiative to substantially increase two-way trade and investment as well as support increased jobs in the US and Africa.

“I’m honoured to again represent IBM on the President’s Advisory Council working closely with the US and governments throughout Africa to drive initiatives that help spur economic growth and prosperity across the continent,” said El Tohamy.

“For almost a century in Africa, IBM has been collaborating with local governments, partners, and organizations across all industries to help businesses get smarter and transform how people live and work,” he shared.

Notably, IBM has a direct presence in 24 African countries, including two research facilities and 17 technical and client delivery centres. The company continues to put in place the systems, infrastructures, and processes to underpin the continent’s economic and social transformation.

IBM is bringing large scale transformation to Africa with its innovative technologies and new approaches across industries.

Moreover, IBM is helping bank the unbanked, empowering entrepreneurship, contributing to sustainable farming, and protecting African wildlife. IBM has been leading initiatives to tackle the continent’s pressing healthcare and education challenges, and even access to safe water.

Furthermore, IBM has designed the IBM Digital-Nation Africa (D-Na), a skills development programme aimed at accelerating Africa’s digital literacy.

In collaboration with the ministries of Egypt and Morocco, IBM rolled out its P-TECH schools in order to empower African youth with new skills for today’s sought-after jobs.

IBM is also collaborating with 16 universities across the continent to bring Quantum computing to Africa and train students and professors on this revolutionary technology.